Our understanding of the basic mechanisms and hence the treatment of bronchial asthma has greatly improved in recent years, such that most asthmatics are able to sustain a normal active life with simple and safe treatment [1, 2]. Nevertheless the incidence and the severity of asthma continue to increase despite advances in therapy [3], and a rise in fatal or near-fatal asthma has been reported in some Western countries [1,4]. Although a number of explanations have been put forward, including the excessive use of bronchodilators [5, 6] and environmental factors, the reason for this unexpected increased rate is still unclear. Therefore, an acute attack is still hazardous in asthmatics, and occurs even when their monitoring and treatment have been optimized [7, 8].
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